Fastener



.NOV- 23, l1948 P. VAN slTTER'r Erm. 2,454,416

FASTENER Filed oct. 25, 1945 a 5119 3a 3136 Fl.G.3

Plas y FIG]A E E/VE W. LE/IMM ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 23, 194s ne w.LeleV 1f g The present invention relates to feisterie'rsL forteinpforariiy holding together perforated plates or sheets superposed'4relation preparatory to" riv-y tiifigl or' the like.

Temporary fasteners of the herein described type havebecome generallyknown in the trad'ea's sheet holders and are usually applied' to andrelnovd' from the plates or lsheets by rnean's of Spee cially designedpliers. These sheet holders are newI being Widely used,A in the'aircraft industry vvitfl'i a great deal ofi success. However in theprior art devices, there is a tendency for certain f the partstdbe'c'oi'e broken, causing" individual parte: of the fastener' toAspring out f. the sheetsv or and thereby presenting a serious' li'azardto Workers. I

It is, therefore, anobject" d'kftl'i prs'ritfiiventionto provide ate'rporaryfasteer, the parte" of which` are. united in a manner tosubstantially preclude the possibility of injury to Workers should thefastenerbreak whilein: use.

Another object of the invention. istovprovidera safety type sheet holderinclud-ing a substantially cylindrical shaped body having a sheetengaging base formedwith an opening, a hollow sterni'movable relative tosaid body, a one piece retainer anchoredl Within saidstem, said retainerhaving parallel legs slidablethrough said opening-r and through thesheets to be clamped; a spreader for said legs formedv with means forlock-ingthe. same tothe retainer; andspringl means? locked toi saidstemandbody for drawing said'sterrij and retainer inwardly of said body.i A

Other objects and advantages ymore or less ancillary totheforegoingreside inthe specific construction and aggroupment oi theelements peculiar'. to thislstructu-re, as will become apparent from amore complete-examination of this spec-iiicaton.

In. the drawing which illustrates the invention: 1 is averticalsectionalView ot theimproved fastener being inserted in the sheets.

Fig,` Zfis aI vertical sectionalzview ini a different planefronr that ofFig. 1; and illustratingthe fast'- ener appliedv to the sheets.-

Fig.; 3" an elevational View of the'V applied fastener.

Fig. 411s vertical" sectional View' of a: fastener constructed: for' usewith sheets having a greater thickr'ies's than the sheets for which aconvezitional` fastener' is desigied".

Fig; 5 is a View sfi-'r'nila-r toFigi.` t arid illustrating th'eifastener with the thicker slieets.l

2. fastener." of iodiiied construction beingk applied to' superpose@sheets.

Fig. '7 isavertical sectional view in a dierent plne andl illustratingthe fastener appliedl to the slie'etsr4 Fig'. 8` is elevatio'r'ia-lviewthereof.

Referring' to* the'l drawing? for ai lire detailed description thereof,and particularly tothe pre` ei'rdf forni of the iVer-ition asillustrated iii rigs. i nel 31, inclusive; a temporary fastener or sheetholder embodying the features of the pres-V ent' invention isg'enerauydesignated by the reference numeral Mill andi is shovvn toJ comprise asubstantially cylindrical'shaped' housing or body H foined at its upperend with` an external @anular frange' l2, and' having its. iower endfoiiedty cross wat. rbase sa' having a @yendri'cal central bore f4foriedtherein and extendingt'herethough..

V lldul'lfled.'V for' Sl'dable rove'll'fe'rt the IS'igu HA its.' ahollow, preferably cylindrical Sha d sleeve l5,- forhlecl at'i'lsujppelend' With an. enl y g'e'dllead. l'.. The' sleeve'. 1.52 i's` movablerela t'i'ie to the housing li' against' the tension ofl the spring, t'ljwhich spr-ing has'oree'rd resting against abutnit forniedby the lowerface of thehead |16 andlits other' end resting on.l the, spreader f8,the construction of which` will be lfiereina-fter Indre fully described.i The spring f1 is held in position at its` upper end` by having thecoils thereof engaging dia-metroally `opposed dimpled knobs I9 formed inthe sleeve l5, While the lower end of sa-id spring is hield by means ofthe diametrica-Hy opposed dimpled knobs 2D formed in the housing Ifladfacent the lower end thereof, as clearlyfshown in Fig. 1 of thedrawing. As is tov be understood,I the4 spring` lfll is under com#pression, but itV iszheldy against full expansion by reason: of itsattachment to the sleeve and body through theknobs i9Y and 20;,respectively.

The por-.tior'rl oi the yhead` l-Whi'ch communicates withy the interior*of the sleeve I5 is formed with a recess 2| in which is disposed theloop portion 22 ,of the; retainer Z3. The retainer 2'3` is formed4 ofa-,sinlgle strip of', material bent in. the' shape of a hairpincomprising leg portioiis-:Z` and extend'- ing: parallel' relation withinthe sleeve l5; Conimunic'atin'g with: the recessV 2i is a diametricallydisposed slot 26' for receiving a removable key'2l1i. the assembly ofthe device, after insertion' off the" retainer 23r Within the sleeveYF55 and thie positioning ofthe loop portion 22 within the recess-.21?,-tl-ie hey ZT extendedtllrough the slot 2U; thereby loki'gtl lobp'@portion 2-2' the recess 2I so that the retainer 23 is held against axialmovement independently of the sleeve I5.

The leg members 24 and 25 adjacent the inner end of the sleeve I5 arebent inwardly as indi cated at 28 and then extend beyond the tube inparallel relation for a predetermined distance and have formed on thefree ends thereof enlarged pointed heads 29 and 3l) to provide outwardlyinclined lateral projections 3l engageable with the underside of thesheets being clamped, as shown in Fig. 3.

The spreader I8 is in the shape o-f a cross having an inner portion 32,cross piece 33, and tail piece 33. The cross piece 33 rests upon theinner face of the base I3 being held in position by the lower end of thespring I1, and the tail piece 34 is positioned between the outer ends ofthe short stems 35 and 36 to hold said stems in spaced relation. Theinner -portion 32 extends inwardly of the sleeve I5 and is disposedbetween the legs 24 and 25, the up-per end -of said portion beingprovided with a head 31 which is wider than the narrowest portion of thelegs 24 and 25. The spreader I8 is held against movement relative to thebody I I, and it will be seen that should the sleeve I5 move outwardlyrelative to the housing I I, such movement would be limited due tocontact of the bent portion 28 with the spreader head 31. Thus theretainer is locked within the sleeve, the spring I1 is locked to thesleeve and body, and movement of the retainer and sleeve relative to thespreader is limited through the enlarged head 31.

As is to be understood, the fastener I9 is designed to hold a pair ofsheets 38 and 39 in perfeet perforate alignment with the enlarged ends29 and 39 to be inserted through aligned rivet hole-s 49 provided in thesheets t8 and 39. The fastener I is ordinarily applied to and removedfrom the sheets by means of specially designed pliers, one jaw of thepliers having engagement with the head I6 and the other jaw positionedbeneath the annular ange I2 while partially encircling the housing II.Upon moving the jaws of the pliers toward each other, the sleeve I andretainer 23 are projected downwardly which will, of course, move theenlarged ends 29 and 30 beyond the tail piece 34, causing said ends toflex inwardly as they are inserted through the rivet holes asillustrated in Fig. l. This movement of the sleeve I5 will compress thespring I1, and as -soon as the ends 29 and 30 have passed through theholes 4I] in the sheets, pressure on the pliers will be released,permitting the spring I1 to urge the sleeve I5 and retainer 23 upwardly.y

As yth-e enlarged ends 29 and 3U are passed through the aligned holes40, the base I3 is brought into contact with the upper face of the sheet38 and, of course, the tail ypiece 34 will also have passed through saidholes. With the housing II resting upon the upper face of the sheet, thespring I1 will securely clamp the sheets between the lateral projectingportions 3I and the base I3.

In prior art devices, these fasteners have a tendency to break due toconstant usage, faulty materials, or other reasons. This breakageusually occurs on the enlarged ends of the leg portions, or occasionallythe spreader will break at the juncture with the cross piece. With thefas- .tener applied to the sheets as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3, itcan be seen that such breakage in the prior art devices would releasethe several parts vof the fastener, permitting the compression spring toextend to its limit with the result that the parts would fly upwardlyand outwardly, presenting a serious hazard to the workmen. In accordancewith the present invention, the spring is prevented from completeexpansion due to its connection with the knobs I9 on the sleeve I5 andthe knobs 20 on the housing I I. The retainer is locked within thesleeve through the key 21, and the spreader will prevent movement of thesleeve I5 and retainer 22 out of the housing II due to the contact ofthe enlarged head 31 with thebent area 28 of said retainer. While thereis a possibility that the fastener will spring away from the sheetsshould the stem or spreader break, such movement will be limited sincethe compression spring is held against complete expansion and, ofcourse, lthe several parts are prevented from separation due to theirinterconnection'.

The herein described sheet holder has an additional advantage in that itis capable of use with sheets having a greater thickness than has beenheretofore possible. The presently constructed sheet holders vary ingrip from g3g to 1%" which means that the largest size is capable of useonly with sheets having a combined thickness of 1%. Due to the unitaryarrangement of the several parts of the sheet holder of the presentinvention, it can be used with sheets having a combined thickness of asmuch as 11/8" but with the same travel as previous fasteners, permittingthe use of existing pliers. This usage is shown in Figs. 4 and 5 of thedrawings, and it will be observed that the members and 36 of theretainer 23 normally extend through and are held an appreciable distancebeyond the base I3 so that it is unnecessary to move the sleeve I5 andretainer 23 an amount greater than the similar parts of the fastenerillustrated in Fig. l in order to pass the same through the relativelythicker sheets 4I and 42. With the spring I1 locked to the sleeve I5 andhousing I I in the manner previously described, and with the retainer 23secured within the sleevev by means of the key 21, and with the enlargedhead 31 of the spreader I8 resting within the bent portion 28 of theretainer, it will be readily seen that it is possible to simply lengthenthe members 35 and 36 in order to adapt the sheet holder f-or use withsheets having a relatively larger thickness. This feature renders itunnecessary to provide pliers having a longer travel in Icompressing thespring of the sheet holder, the use of which would tire the hand of theoperator because of the reduced mechanical advantage required.

In the prior art devices when the sheet holder was in normal unattachedposition, the enlarged ends of the retainer legs would be in abuttingrelation with the outer face of the .base of the device, thusnecessitating the expenditure of considerable pressure on the retaineragainst the spring in order to project the legs sufciently beyond thebase of the fastener body to permit the same to pass through the alignedholes of the larger thickness sheets. As before indicated, the sameamount of pressure is required to be applied to the head IB of thefastener illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5 to position the fastener withinthe holes in the sheets il and 42 as would be required to position thesmaller size fastener illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3. Thus the fastenerconstructed in accordance with the present invention embodies featuresof safety as well as other -features making it usable with sheets havinga thickness greater than the sheets with which the conventional type offastener is used.

In the modified form of the invention illustrated in Figs. 6, '7, and 8,there is disclosed a cylindrical shaped housing 45 having a base 46formed with a central opening 4'I. As in the preferred form, there isemployed a hollow sleeve 48 movable relative to the body 45. However',this form of the invention diifers from the preferred form in the meansfor locking the retainer 49 within the sleeve. Referring to Fig. 7 ofthe drawing, it will be observed that fingers 50 and 5I are stamped fromthe body of the sleeve and are bent inwardly for engagement with theloop portion 52 of the retainer 45. The sleeve 48 is preferably formedof a lightweight metal, and the fingers 50 and 5| have a characteristicwhich permits them to be readily bent into locking engagement with theloop portion 52. In order to facilitate assembly of the device, thesleeve 48 is slotted on opposed sides thereof and across the top wall asindicated at 53 which permits the upper portion of the sleeve to bespread apart for insertion and removal of the retainer 49.

Interposed between the head of the sleeve 48 and the base of the body 45is a compression spring 54 functioning in the manner previouslydescribed. The spreader 55 is identical in construction with thespreader I8 of the preferred form, the upper enlarged end or head 56thereof preventing separation of the retainer 49 from the body 45. Thisform of holder is applied to and removed from the sheets in the mannerpreviously described.

By the use of the dimples IS and 20 we cause the sleeve I5 and the bodyIl or 45, as the case may be, to tightly grip or be locked to the springI'I or 54 near the ends of the latter. By virtue of this constructionthe spring therefore ties the sleeve and retainer assembly to the body,and if the retainer should be accidentally released, as by the breakingoff of the ends 29 and 30, the retainer and sleeve assembly could notthen be sprung suddenly out of the housing with a possibility ofinjuring a workman. The Sudden expansion of the spring in such a casemight cause the entire device to jump a short distance away from thework, but since there is considerable mass in the housing or body I I or45, such movement would be slight.

Another feature of our invention which is independent of the tying ofthe retainer and sleeve assembly to the body by means of the spring isthat illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5 where the head 31 on the spreader isused to limit the retraction of the legs 35 and 36 into the housing, asdistinguished from the conventional construction where the movement ofthe legs into the housing is limited only by the engagement of theirenlarged ends with the base of the housing.` The present construction isimportant because it reduces greatly the necessary travel of theretainer, and consequently of the spring and associated parts, where thedevice is used upon thick work.

Although the foregoing description is necessarily of a detailedcharacter, in order to completely set forth the invention, it is to beunderstood that the specific terminology is not intended to berestrictive or confining, and it is to be further understood thatvarious rearrangements of parts and modifications of structural detailmay be resorted to without departing from the scope or spirit of theinvention as herein claimed.

We claim:

1. A device for temporarily clamping together perforated sheets insuperposed relation comprising a body having a sheet engaging baseprovided with an opening, a sleeve movable relative to said body, aretainer locked in said sleeve for movement therewith, said retainercarrying means on one end projecting through said opening and adaptedfor engagement against the underside of the sheets being clamped, aspreader for said retainer resting on the inner face of said base, saidspreader having means engageable with said retainer for limiting upwardmovement thereof, and a spring having one end resting on said spreaderand its other end locked to said sleeve for drawing said sleeve andretainer inwardly of said body to urge said one end of the retainer intosheet clamping engagement.

2. A device for temporarily clamping together perforated sheets insuperposed relation comprising a body having a sheet engaging baseprovided with an opening, a hollow sleeve closed at one end movablerelative to said body, a substantially U-shaped retainer within saidsleeve, means comprising fingers extending toward the center of saidsleeve for clamping said retainei1 thereto, said retainer including apair of legs extending beyond said sleeve and through said opening,means on the ends of said legs adapted for engagement against theunderside of the sheets being clamped, a spreader -for said legs, andspring means drawing said sleeve and retainer inwardly of said body tourge the means on said legs spaced by said spreader into sheet clampingengagement.

3. In a device of the character described, a housing having a sheetengaging base provided with an opening, a retainer having a pair of legsextending through said opening and having feet adapted for engagementwith the underside of the sheets to be clamped, a spreader interposedbetween said legs having a head spaced from the base of the housing,spring means for exerting a force tending to pull said feet toward saidbase, said spreader being fixed within the housing, and means on saidretainer for engaging said head and preventing further retraction ofsaid legs while said feet are spaced from the base of said housing.

4. In adevice of the character described, a housing having a sheetengaging base provided with an opening, a retainer having a pair of legsextending through said opening and having feet adapted for engagementwith the underside of the sheets to be clamped, a spreader interposedbetween said legs having a crossarm within the housing resting againstthe base thereof and having a head spaced from the crossarm, a coilspring within the housing in engagement with said crossarm andoperatively connected with said retainer for exerting a force tending topull said feet toward said base, and means on said retainer for engagingsaid head and preventing further retraction of said legs while said feetare spaced from the base of said housing.

PAUL `VAN SITTERT. MICHAEL KOSTRUBANIC, JR. EUGENE W. LEHMAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le ofthis patent:

NETED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,256,634 Webb Sept. 23, 19412,294,013 Wallace Aug. 25, 1942 2,339,881 Rossmann Jan. 25, 1944

